Detroit Tigers manager Jim Leyland, left, and Oakland Athletics manager Bob Melvin tip their caps during introductions before Game 1 of the ALDS on Saturday in Detroit.AP Photo

OAKLAND, Calif. -- It's only happened once in the last three decades, but given the success of the Oakland Athletics and Baltimore Orioles, it could very well happen again.

Bob Melvin and Buck Showalter are considered the favorites for this year's Manager of the Year Award, and picking a clear-cut winner seems nearly impossible.

Which is why Tigers manager Jim Leyland is in favor of awarding the league's top managerial honor to both.

"Not to put the cart before the horse, but I hope that Buck Showalter and Bob Melvin are Co-Managers of the Year this year," Leyland said before the Tigers tried for a three-game sweep at Oakland in the ALDS on Tuesday night.

Since the BBWAA initiated the manager's awards in 1983, the voting has only ended with a tie once. It happened in 1996 when Joe Torre and Johnny Oates shared the AL award.

"I think this would be a year there should be two guys getting the award," said Leyland, who has been voted manager of the year three times.

Showalter, in his second full season at the helm in Baltimore, led the Orioles to a 93-win season and their first playoff appearance since 1997. It was their first winning campaign in 14 years.

If the Tigers advance to the American League Championship Series, there's a chance they could face the Orioles, who are tied at one game apiece with New York.

Melvin, meanwhile, helped the A's to a 94-win season, erasing a 13-game AL West deficit and overtaking two-time reigning AL champion Texas on the season's final day.

"The job they've done all year has been remarkable," Leyland said.
"They've had the best record in baseball for a long, long period of time
now."

Oakland became the first team in major league history to win the division or pennant after trailing by five or more games with fewer than 10 to go.